A few days ago I had my final session with a social worker who I had been going to see for one hour every two weeks for the past year. I was amazed that after our last session I began doing some major decluttering in a number of areas in the house. Initially, some heavy emotions surfaced but then, after a few hours, I felt a lightness as I began setting up a very zen-like writing space in one room in particular.
During that day of decluttering, I wrote my social worker quite a long letter and read a few articles on how clutter, fundamentally, starts within our very own minds; unresolved traumas can cause a sense of disorganization within which then manifest in the physical world as clutter. It seems as though a lot of people have some sort of clutter issue which seems to be very challenging for them to get a handle on. My experience revealed that the way to deal with clutter in our physical reality is to first deal with the 'clutter' that is within our very own mind and heart.
One of the articles that I read by Sandra Cooze was 'Clutter Is The Reflection of a Wounded Soul'.
I felt as though she had a deep understanding of the connection between clutter in our inner world and clutter in our outer reality. These are some points from her article:
Clutter could stem from the fear of letting go.
For the most part, they want their home to be clean, yet when they are supposed to declutter, they panic. Letting go of things can be just like having to face your trauma. Even if it is just subconsciously. And that will eventually cause depression and anxiety on top of everything else. In essence a clutterer clutters to bury their true feelings and then punishes him/herself for it. It is a viscous cycle.
So how can you begin the healing journey? At first you have to acknowledge that you have been suppressing an immense amount of pain for probably many many years. Then you have to be willing to let it go.
Most trauma survivors are afraid to let go of the trauma because they don’t know who they would be without it. The trauma has been a part of them for so long. Simply cleaning the house and rigorously throwing away everything would merely rip off a band-aid. This could never work because the wound underneath, the wound that was caused by the trauma so many years ago, would still be bleeding. The band-aid would just be replaced by another one.
If you truly want to change your clutter habit, you have to begin with the root cause – the trauma. I highly recommend seeking support from a trauma informed professional to help you with your internal clutter. And then, as you heal on the inside, you will be able to transform your surroundings.
I felt that these were some very wise words. Having someone to talk with who is a great listener and empathic can greatly help one uncover and heal some of these deep-seated traumas that are the root cause of clutter in our outer reality.
During these last few days as I cleared away some old energy, I stepped more confidently into work that I felt truly aligned with ~ helping others to declutter their inner world. I would be honoured to help you in any way that I can find a life of greater clarity and simplicity by letting go of that which no longer serves.
See my Life Guide page for more information:
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